Update 10:15 p.m. ET: Ryan Lochte‘s lawyer, Jeffrey Owens, told ABC News in a statement: “I am not aware of the federal police recommending charges for filing a false report. I am not surprised to hear it, though. They’ve gone this far and have failed to acknowledge that the robbery actually took place, so that would be the natural next step. A gun was pointed at the swimmers and they were forced to get out of their cab and give up their money. No matter what happened at the gas station, the swimmers were robbed by people with a gun appearing to be law enforcement. No matter what country you are in, that is robbery, and robbery is a serious crime.”
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Ryan Lochte and his teammate Jimmy Feigen face a possible indictment by Brazilian authorities, the Associated Press reported on Thursday, August 18. According to the AP, officials are recommending that the two swimmers be indicted on charges of falsely reporting a crime. (ABC News initially reported that the two had already been indicted, but Rio police told NBC News that was not the case.)
The news comes amid allegations that the 12-time gold medalist lied about being robbed and held at gunpoint on Sunday, August 14.
During a press conference on Thursday, Civil Police Chief Fernando Veloso said that there “was no robbery” and that Brazilian officials believe that Lochte and his teammates Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and Feigen lied about being robbed to cover up a fight they were allegedly involved in after vandalizing a gas station bathroom.
Lochte and Feigen have maintained that their robbery story is true. However, authorities claim that their teammates Bentz and Conger admitted the account was fabricated.
According to the Associated Press — and as shown in security camera footage obtained by Us Weekly — an armed security guard approached the men about the alleged vandalization and a manager asked the swimmers to pay for the damage. The AP reports that the athletes did indeed pay.
Lochte originally claimed that when they were robbed, one of the assailants held a gun to his forehead. During a phone conversation with Matt Lauer on the Today show on Wednesday, August 17, however, Lochte said that a gun was simply pointed in his direction. As of Thursday morning, Lochte was still in the United States. His teammates were previously detained by authorities while attempting to board a U.S.-bound flight.
Us Weekly has reached out to Lochte and Feigen for comment.
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